A Day in My Life as a Writer (and Mum of 4!)

Most days, my life starts at around 6:30am. On weekends I try to sleep in — emphasis on “try” — but it almost never happens. Ironically, those early weekend mornings are when I get big chunks of writing or studying done. Everyone else sleeps in, the house is quiet, and for a few precious hours I get uninterrupted time with my laptop and my imagination. It’s honestly the most productive part of my week.

Morning Chaos (With a Side of Coffee)

No matter what the day looks like, it all begins with coffee. I truly cannot function without one. While I sit and drink mine, the kids sit and have breakfast, so we actually get a nice little moment together to start the day.

Then… it’s chaos.

A blur of:
“Get dressed!”
“Stop playing, we’re running late!”
“Pack your bag!”
“Where’s your lunchbox?”

All the classic lines of a household with four kids trying to leave on time. It’s loud, messy, and honestly kind of funny once I’m looking back on it — but in the moment? It’s a sprint.

Finding Time to Write (AKA: Pockets of Magic)

At night, after dinner, bath time, and our bedtime routine — and when my youngest is finally asleep — that’s when I usually get my laptop out and try to write.

But by then, I’m exhausted.
Work drains me.
Home life drains me.
Life drains me.

Sometimes I can focus and get a really good chunk done. Other times I stare at the screen and barely manage a sentence or two. But I always remind myself:
Writing something, even one sentence, is better than nothing.

Weekends are a different story. First thing in the morning, before everyone wakes up, when the house is quiet and my coffee has kicked in — that’s when my writing absolutely takes off. That’s when the magic happens.

How I Actually Write

I always write on my laptop, and depending on the time of day, I’ll have either a coffee or some snacks next to me. I move around a lot too — the couch, the desk, the bed, outside — I never really stay in one spot for long. If I were a sim, my “comfort” bar would always be blinking.

My little rituals are simple:
Coffee.
Quiet music.
Snacks.
A comfy spot (that changes every 30 minutes).

Nothing fancy — just me trying to create enough calm to let the story in my head spill onto the page.

The Hard Parts No One Sees

People imagine writers sitting peacefully at a desk, creating magic. My reality is a little different.

I struggle with:
• Focus — because I’m so tired by the time I get to write.
• Time — because I’m juggling work, study, motherhood, life, and trying to build my career.
• Guilt — because writing time is time I could spend with my kids or catching up on everything else.
• Burnout — which is very real and very close.
• Being pulled in five directions at all times.

Some days I genuinely wonder if I’ll ever reach my dream, because I can’t dedicate full-time hours to writing. I often fear I’ll miss out on moments with my kids. I worry about my performance at work because I’m losing the spark for childcare.

It’s overwhelming. And exhausting. And some days I feel like I’m barely keeping up.

Why I Keep Going

Because I have to.

Because I want my children to see that I didn’t quit.
That hard work is worth it.
That chasing your dreams is loud and messy and tiring — but possible.

I write because I want people to get swept up, to feel something, to escape, to fall in love with magic and characters the way I did. I want one of my books to someday change someone’s life the way reading once changed mine.

And I want to build the life my family deserves.
A life filled with more time, more love, more stability, more magic.

So yes — it’s hard.
It’s probably the hardest thing I’ve ever done.
But I won’t stop.

Because even in the chaos — especially in the chaos — I believe this will all be worth it.